Brevard County Civilian-Military Community Relations Council HistoryResearched and
written by Paul Zima

The history of the Civilian-Military Council (CivMil) dates back more than fifty
years and predates Patrick Air Force Base itself. Drawing on two separate and distinct
communities, the civilians of Brevard County and the military members in and around
Patrick Air Force Base, the leadership of both had the vision and drive to create
an organization that builds on the experiences, resources, goals and talents of each
community. An organization called the Greater Cocoa Civilian Military Relations Council
held its first meeting at the Patrick AFB Officer's Club on December 14, 1953 to
cope with the growing pains of the entire community. While there are no recorded
minutes of the first meetings, committees were formed to work a wide variety of issues
ranging from infrastructure (roads and bridges) to mosquito control to the growing
military presence in the local area in pursuit of the much heralded space race of
the 1950's and 60's.

That first December meeting in 1953 resulted in an agreement of cooperation between
Patrick AFB and the local civilian leadership. At the time, the Commander of Patrick
AFB was Major General William Richardson and the sitting County Commissioners were
Dave Nisbet, Joe (Papa Joe) Wickam, Adger Smith, and Gus Faulk.

Earlier, Joe Wickham originated cooperation between the local communities and the
Banana River Naval Air Station, the predecessor to Patrick AFB. As the Naval station
was being deactivated and Patrick was being activated, surplus military equipment
was designated for disposal, equipment which the local community desperately needed
but could not ordinarily afford. In 1952, Wickham used his already established relationship
with the Navy to acquire the equipment at bargain prices, resulting in massive road,
bridge and construction projects being created throughout the county.

The purchase included dredging equipment and airplanes. At the time, the Salt Marsh
Mosquito virtually prevented any outdoor activity after dark anywhere in Brevard
County. The dredging equipment was used to impound and destroy the breeding grounds
along the shoreline. Military owned and operated airplanes were used to spray agents
which destroyed mosquito larvae throughout the county. The program was an astounding
success and fostered an unprecedented level of cooperation between the base and local
communities. Other joint ventures proved equally successful as trust and cooperation
were built through regular meetings in both official and social settings.

Poor water quality at Patrick AFB led to an agreement with the city of Cocoa in the
early 1960’s. At the time, Patrick received water either through its own wells or
an antiquated pipeline from "south of Brevard." To obtain higher quality water, a
pipeline was designed and installed from the city of Cocoa to the Patrick AFB at
a $4 million cost to the local communities. Again Papa Joe Wickham and Dave Nisbet
were at the center of cooperation as the primary arbiters of the water pipeline agreement
and construction. To this day, water is supplied to Patrick AFB through these same
pipelines.

When CivMil was in its infancy, Brevard County was in a state of growth and rapid
development. Visionaries like Joe Wickham, Dave Nisbet, Adger Smith, and Gus Faulk
made certain that the infrastructure was in place for anticipated civilian and military
expansion. These same community leaders formed the genesis of what we now call CivMil.
For more than fifty years, CivMil has provided an informal avenue for military and
community leaders to meet and get to know each other and work on issues of mutual
concern.